What The Hell Is Twitter?

I only really understood how a Blog actually works after seeing the movie Julie, Julia with The Glamazon, my dear girlfriend, before Christmas in 2009.  As I watched the written word fly like a butterfly from the actresses laptop into the wonderful world of cyberspace throughout this movie, my heart started to flutter.

I learn, connect and love through being told stories.  I need colour, characters and a message that connects to my heart.  If you can’t move me to laugh, cry or feel something constructive and meaningful, then you’ve probably lost me.

My patient and dear friend Winston, who is an IT Guru, has been telling me about blogging for quite some time now.  He was with me in the beginning when I self published A Helping Hand with Life.  That little ‘boutique book’ as it was called by the Large Bookstore chain back in 2002 made the papers in the Top Ten Bestseller List as a photocopied, cling wrapped, hand illustrated text, all due to Winston’s tireless help and expertise.

I then sent it off to a big publishing house in Sydney because I loved the way they published one of my favourite authors work.  The publishing house had its head office in Sydney.   After speaking to the Editor herself over the phone from Bris Vegas, she invited to fly me down to meet with her and have a chat.

“I won’t publish anyone I don’t like, so I need to meet with you”. She said in a manicured English accent.

Of course my first thought was ‘well she probably won’t like me’.  And that has been a mindset I have had to work on changing for years.  I naturally assume people don’t like me when they meet me.  So I don’t invade their space or entertain the notion that they would want me to chat with them and make small talk.  Plus, I am unashamedly an introvert and suck at small talk anyway.

One of the things I find so appealing about my husband (Mr. Delicious) is that when he meets people, he is the opposite.  He assumes that you will really like him.  He does not entertain the notion that you might not.  I also call him Mr. Have-a-chat because he will chat to anyone, anywhere, anytime freely about almost anything.  It’s a charming skill.

No surprise I have been in therapy for years detoxing the programming that I am flawed, unlikeable, unacceptable, a burden and an uneducated scatterbrain.  That is whey when people ask me where I have studied I proudly say “The University of Life”.  I did leave school before I was 16 and didn’t finish my education.   Mother Nature and Father Time have been wonderful substitute tutors for me. I have learned my life lessons most definitely the hard way, but nonetheless, I have learned, and the older I get the more I realize I still have much, much more to learn.

I have gathered a great deal of information on ‘what not to do” and that is very useful information to know.  It has been said that wisdom is knowledge applied and that in youth we learn and in age we understand.  

I had so much fear and denial surrounding me for the first 33 years of my life, that my ego believed it, and it defined me.   The fearful female that masqueraded as me for all those years, was never me, she was a decoy, a warrior and did her best to protect my heart and throw people off track so true, timid self could remain safely hidden and locked away.

My ego was like hard marble that had to be chipped away from my heart.   Mother Nature and Father Time chip away at my fear and denial these days, slowly but surely.   I am sometimes unwilling to change my view of myself and the world.  I  complain regularly (Beautiful Barb, my Heart Mother knows all too well), but finally my truth and my heart are now quite empowered.  l am unapologetically, free to be me.   I feel like my heart has finally been let out of jail.  My fear based ego has not totally gone, there is still work to do, but hey I am a young woman at age 47.  Let’s hope I’ve got at least another 40 or so years of ego chipping to have done before I leave this existence!

I love Michelangelo’s quote as it echoes this journey so many of us take.

“I saw the angel in the marble and carved until I set him free”.

Sorry I wandered off a bit there, but long story short I flew to Sydney to meet with the Editor, we chatted for hours and I was offered a publishing deal with royalties up front.  It was surreal.  And she said with teary eyes and a warm smile,

“Cynthia we would be honoured to publish your beautiful book.”

It was a “wow” kind of moment in my life.  My first book child was officially born.

So back to Winston he and a good friend of his Jack, who is also an IT genius, sat me down on December 22nd, 2009 and patiently explained how this blog concept could help me help others.  I find when I visit rehabs, jails, schools and also present Emotional Fitness keynotes and workshops for the corporate world, many people ask when my next book is coming out and how they can keep in touch on a regular basis with my work.  The answer to my prayers is this beautiful new buddy, my daily blog. Yay!

So I started my first blog on the morning of December 23rd, 2009 (see my first blog) and just love this concept.  I get so encouraged at the thought that someone, somewhere who is on a similar journey might find my words help their head and heart waltz through the day instead of war.

“Now the next thing we need to do is to get you a Twitter account” Winston said firmly.

“What the hell is Twitter and why do I even need it?” I asked with genuine bewilderment.

“Well, all of your forthcoming speaking engagements, stuff happening with your book launch later this year, your daily Word Vitamins.  All those people in your data base that enquire regularly about your work, it will help them follow you and stay in touch.” Winston explained.”

So I came home and sat at my laptop yesterday, and started to explore the world of Twitter.  I have not yet officially launched my Blog Site yet as we are still working on getting it as gorgeous as possible.   Hopefully by the time you read this I will know what the hell I am doing with the Twitter business and not using it like a true Twit!

“Then there’s Facebook Cynthia”. Winston smiled

“So how the hell do I use that?” my expression said it all.

“Lets get that set up another day; we’ll work on one thing at a time.” He smiled warmly.

Thank God for gentle, patient men is all I can say. Thank you dearest Winston and Jack. I am so grateful to be living in this age where technology is so amazing and we can keep our hearts connected even though we might be on opposite sides of the world.  

Living a life where I no longer catastrophise the things that don’t matter and minimize the things that do, has helped me find a gentle love for my own heart and yours, the heart of my fellow man.

My Word Vitamins for today remind me that I no longer need to be ashamed nor fearful of the things that matter to my heart.  We are all sensitive and passionate in different areas for different reasons.   Our sensitivity and heartfelt passion not only matters, it needs to be respected and attended to.  Hope to see you here tomorrow, have a peaceful day.

“Our lives begin to end the day we become silent about things that matter.”               Martin Luther King